Strawberries and Cream

Yesterday was a perfect summer day.
Sunny. 84 degrees. Bright. Warm. Breezy.
And I was stuck inside working a 22 hour overnight shift through the holiday.

I did, however, manage to stumble upon
some juicy pieces of office gossip in that time.
It almost made it worth it.
And, it did, at least, make the hours tick by just a little faster.
(But those are stories for another day...)

I had wished to be able to spend the holiday
lying somewhere quiet, soaking in the sun.
But, there will be other days, and other opportunities
before the summer ends, to be sure.

In the mean time, I did manage to whip up this brilliant
vanilla layer cake with fresh whipped cream and strawberries.
(Click on any of the images below to get the recipe.)

Channeling some Betty Crocker energy this weekend,
I made two versions of this cake.
After giving away most of the first
(and a dozen cupcakes) to friends and family,
and then inevitably receiving their mostly complimentary feedback,
it was decided that the cake needed
to be a bit fluffier, and richer in vanilla flavor.

So, I tweaked a few things.... and made another.
And, just in time to take a few slices into work with me.

(The rest I left behind for my husband -
who must of enjoyed himself while I was at work
- if the carcass of a cake that was left behind is any indication...)

This second version didn't make its way into the hands of friends or family,
but was greedily eaten up by my husband and I,
while we shared a brief moment of phone time together
(as he prepared for bed at home, and I at work).

From my kitchen to yours,
Happy Cooking!

Craving Chocolate

Lately I've been craving just about anything sweet. I haven't really indulged in anything decadent since the wedding, but over the past few days I've been dreaming about chocolate waterfalls, and pudding rivers. So, since I had bought a bag of sweet cherries on sale at the local grocer last week, and they were still sitting in the fridge on the verge of “use them or lose them,” and there were still six packages of cream cheese leftover from a dessert we had never gotten around to making, I decided to make a chocolate cherry cheesecake. This is the first time I've attempted this chocolatey creation, but it was spectacular. I just had to share the recipe and I hope you enjoy licking your plates clean just as we did!

CRUMB CRUST
(Makes 1 Crust)
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
2 tbsp. sugar
¼ cup butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix together the graham crackers, sugar and melted butter. Press mixture into the bottom (and up the sides approx. ½ inch) of a 9-inch spring form pan. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Cool.

CHERRY SAUCE
(Makes approx. 1 Cup of Sauce)
2 cups sweet cherries, stems removed, halved and pitted
1/3 cup sugar
3 tbsp. water
1 tsp. lemon juice

Place the cherries into the ceramic pot of a small slow-cooker. Add the water, lemon juice and sprinkle with 1/3 cup of sugar. Cover and cook on high for 1 – 1 ½ hours or until very soft.

Remove from cooking pot and blend in a food processor or blender until smooth. Press the puree through a strainer to remove any seeds and skins.

Cover and chill until needed. (This sauce can be stored for up to 5 days.)

CHOCOLATE CHEESECAKE FILLING
(Makes 1 Cheesecake)
3 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
1 ¼ cup sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3 eggs
1 ½ tsp. Vanilla extract

Beat the cream cheese, sugar and cocoa powder in a large bowl until smooth. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition and then stir in the vanilla. Pour approximately one quarter of the filling into the prepared crust. Top this with one quarter cup of cherry sauce and then another quarter of the cheesecake filling. Layer another quarter cup of cherry sauce and then the remaining cheesecake filling. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 45 to 50 minutes, or until set. Remove from oven and loosen the sides from the pan with a knife. Cool completely and refrigerate several hours before serving.

**TIP** Cooking the cheesecake in a water bath will prevent it from cracking during the baking process.

A Picnic Perfect Pie

Lately it seems I've been having a harder and harder time effectively communicating with Jon's family, particularly his mother. She is convinced that I do not like her, and has recently voiced this concern to Jon and his brother (who in turn confront me with all the things I should be doing, and the roles I should be playing to appease her) but in fact, I already do like her, and it hard for me to understand how or why she would believe otherwise.

But since I have obviously not convinced her of my liking, I ( in the only other way I know how to reach out) took her a pie and hoped that she would see this as an effort to “welcome” her to my family.

I made a simple apple pie because it is a dish I have been making with my mother since I was a child and it is something I can comfortably throw together without much thought. The recipe I use is ever changing, and I hardly ever measure any of the ingredients for this pie, but knowing I would be posting the recipe I tried to keep a close watch on what (and how much) I was using of each of my chosen ingredients. The pie isn't the prettiest pie I've ever made ( I threw it together pretty quickly), but is was certainly one of the more flavorful.

Everyone enjoyed it, immensely. In fact, Jon's stepfather was so in love with it that when Jon's mother told me I could take the rest back home with me if I wanted he literally shrieked in dismay. Obviously, I left the pie.

Deep Dish Apple Pie
(Makes 1 Pie - approx. 8 slices)

1 Pkg. Pillsbury Ready Made Roll-Out Pie Crusts
1 bag Granny Smith Apples (approx.10 small apples)
2/3 cup Light Brown Sugar
1 tsp. Cinnamon, ground
1/2 tsp. Nutmeg, ground
1/2 tsp Ginger, ground
2 tbsp. Honey
2 tbsp. Maple Syrup
2 tbsp. Cornstarch
(Mix together all the non-apple filling ingredients – from sugar to cornstarch) ahead of time to aid in the even dispersal of spices throughout the filling.)

First, peal and core the apples. I use an apple corer-slicer combo when I core my apples, which I think saves some time. Then I slice the apple pieces in half again before tossing them into a large mixing bowl.

Once all of the apples are sliced, I toss in the sugar/spices, cornstarch, honey and maple syrup and then mix well, making sure to evenly coat all of the apple pieces. Set aside.

Coat the bottom of a glass pie dish with non-stick spray or butter and flour. Gently unroll one pie crust and line the bottom of the pie dish making sure there is approximately 1/2 inch of dough overhanging the lip of the dish. Add the apple filling into the crust creating a mound of spiced apples (sometimes I add in a few small pieces of butter on the apples at this point (before adding the top crust) for a little extra decadency.

Gently unroll the top crust and cut out a few shapes (or slits) into the center top crust. Place the crust on top of the mound of apples and use a fork (or decorative spoon edge) to press the top and bottom crusts together along the edge. Trim the excess dough (not too close to the edge of the dish).

Bake the pie at 425 degrees for approximately 15 minutes. Reduce the heat at this point and bake at 350 degrees for an additional 35-45 minutes, or until the apples are tender. Usually I'll line the edge of the pie crust with a few strips of tin foil after the first 15 minutes of baking to prevent the crust edge from burning.

Let cool for 20 minutes or so before serving.

**Advice: Serve with French Vanilla Ice Cream … mmm.

Per serving (1 slice): 202 calories, 37 grams sugar, and 5 grams fiber.